ACLJ to UN: Recognize ISIS Genocide

Just last week, the ACLJ announced our seven-point plan to advance the cause of Christians persecuted by the Islamic State (ISIS) genocide in the Middle East.

We are pleased to report that today we took a major step in implementing that plan, mobilizing our affiliate with consultative status at the United Nations (U.N.), the European Centre for Law and Justice (ECLJ). We just sent a legal letterto U.N. Secretary-General Ban ki-Moon, urging him to recognize the genocide against Christians and to take decisive action.

While we have previously raised this issue at the U.N. in verbal addresses and written submissions, today we sent this letter directly to the Secretary-General on behalf of over 307,000 people who have signed our petition – including people from 147 nations and territories.

As part of our plan, and following up on our successful campaign urging Secretary of State John Kerry to recognize ISIS’s atrocities targeting Christians as genocide (which he did in March and confirmed this week), our focus turns back to the U.N. – which so far, has not taken the critical step of recognizing the genocide.

In our letter, we urged the U.N. Secretary-General to recognize the genocide, and to press the relevant U.N. offices and bodies to do the same. In particular, we stressed the importance of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights addressing the issue at the Human Rights Council’s upcoming 32nd session in June 2016. This is a vital opportunity for the U.N. to squarely address the atrocities, recognize them as genocide, and begin the process of taking concrete action to stop it and protect the victims.

We laid out the case for why the U.N. must formally recognize the ongoing genocide of Christians. We summarized the gruesome evidence that the ongoing atrocities are in fact targeted at religious and ethnic minorities – especially Christians.

And we reminded the Secretary-General that numerous other international bodies have already declared that these atrocities are genocide – including the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, the European Parliament, the Holy See’s representative at the U.N. in Geneva as well as Pope Francis, the British House of Commons, the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. House of Representatives, and the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. We said:

As indicated above, a growing number of international bodies have recognised that the ongoing atrocities committed by members of the Islamic State constitute genocide against Christians and other religious and ethnic minorities. On this point, there can now be no meaningful dispute. Your Excellency, it is time for the United Nations not just to join, but also to lead the international community in confronting the ongoing genocide. To do so, however, it must first formally recognise the genocide.

Consistent with our seven-point plan, we explained in our letter that “[o]nce the United Nations recognises the genocide as such, then it may properly mobilise the international community to honour the terms of the Genocide Convention and fulfill its responsibility to protect.”

The “responsibility to protect” is an established U.N. initiative whereby “the international community, through the United Nations” has recognized its

responsibility to use appropriate diplomatic, humanitarian and other peaceful means, in accordance with Chapters VI and VIII of the Charter, to help to protect populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity.

The responsibility to protect calls for “collective action, in a timely and decisive manner, through the Security Council,”

should peaceful means be inadequate and national authorities are manifestly failing to protect their populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity. We stress the need for the General Assembly to continue consideration of the responsibility to protect populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity and its implications, bearing in mind the principles of the Charter and international law.

If this established “responsibility” means anything, the U.N. must act now to stop the current genocide and protect the Christians and other religious and ethnic minorities intentionally and systematically targeted by the Islamic State.

We also called to the Secretary-General’s attention the prosecution tools available to the U.N. to confront and stop ongoing genocide. The Genocide Convention provides for “international penal tribunals,” which could take the form of ad hoc tribunals established by the U.N. Security Council such as those implemented regarding the genocides in Rwanda and Yugoslavia. Or, if the U.N. Security Council makes the necessary referral, the International Criminal Court could prosecute members of the Islamic State committing genocide.

Either way, the U.N. Security Council must act, and the U.N. Secretary-General is the person empowered by the U.N. Charter to call upon the Security Council to do so.

The U.N. Charter gives the Secretary-General the power to “bring to the attention of the Security Council any matter which in his opinion may threaten the maintenance of international peace and security.” That is why our first letter, a key first step in our broader seven-point plan, is directed specifically to the U.N. Secretary-General himself.

Our government, and the U.N., must do everything in their power to 1) stop the genocide and 2) protect the Christians. So must we.

The ACLJ will continue to stand for our Christian brothers and sisters, and others targeted for destruction by ISIS’s inhuman and genocidal acts of violence. Please stand with us. Add your voice. Sign our new petition (below and) at BeHeardProject.com today, and share it with your friends, family, faith groups on social media.

Receive the latest news, updates, and contribution opportunities from ACLJ.

As we aggressively engage globally to defend dying Christians from genocide, every donation (even $5) makes a difference & will be MATCHED. Have your gift doubled through our Matching Challenge.

If you are having technical difficulties with our donation processor, it may be overloaded at the moment. Please refresh or check our site again in a couple of hours as we work to resolve any issues. For any questions or to make a donation by phone, please call our Member Services department at ‎1-800-342-2255‎.

As we aggressively engage globally to defend dying Christians from genocide, every donation (even $5) makes a difference & will be MATCHED. Have your gift doubled through our Matching Challenge.

Our payment processor is overloaded at the moment. Please consider using PayPal to donate, or check our site again in a couple of hours as they work to resolve any issues. For any questions or to make a donation by phone, please call our Member Services department at ‎1-800-342-2255‎.

Encourage your friends to sign and donate by sharing this petition.

Thank you for making a donation!

Thank you for making your generous, tax-deductible gift to the American Center for Law and Justice. Your support is greatly appreciated. A confirmation of your gift will be emailed to you shortly. To learn how we manage the resources you provide, click here.

The situation for Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani has taken a dire turn. After a brutal home raid where he was attacked and arrested, Pastor Youcef has been imprisoned again, far away from his family. We recently told you how Iranian authorities in plain clothes violently beat Pastor Youcef in his home...

In a major development, American Pastor Andrew Brunson has been moved from the Turkish prison to his house in Turkey. The ACLJ represents the family of Pastor Andrew – a U.S. citizen from Black Mountain, North Carolina – who has spent nearly 21 months imprisoned in Turkey because of his Christian...

Big Abortion is launching a massive propaganda campaign to activate its supporters and attack life. Planned Parenthood has rolled out an online initiative it calls “Unstoppable” – featuring pro-abortion artists and celebrities, and urging its supporters to sign an abortion “manifesto.” The intent...

Christians in Nigeria are living in danger every minute because of their faith. The constant threat of abduction, torture, and murder by radical Muslim terrorist groups hangs over them daily. The ACLJ has just taken action, demanding the worlds’ leaders intervene to end this nightmare for Nigeria’s...

Pakistani Christians often face violent persecution, torture, police abuse, and even murder because of their faith. We refuse to accept this and have taken action to defend these Christians. We just filed a critical legal submission through our European affiliate, the European Centre for Law and...

The situation for Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani has taken a dire turn. After a brutal home raid where he was attacked and arrested, Pastor Youcef has been imprisoned again, far away from his family. We recently told you how Iranian authorities in plain clothes violently beat Pastor Youcef in his home...

Five years ago, we celebrated a major victory when due to the diligent legal advocacy work of the ACLJ and the unwavering support and prayers of ACLJ members, Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani – sentenced to die in Iran for “apostasy” – was set free. Today we must ask you once again to pray for Pastor...

The ACLJ is an organization dedicated to the defense of constitutional liberties secured by law.

American Center for Law and Justice is a d/b/a for Christian Advocates Serving Evangelism,
Inc., a tax-exempt, not-for-profit, religious corporation as defined under Section 501(c)(3)
of the Internal Revenue Code, specifically dedicated to the ideal that religious freedom and
freedom of speech are inalienable, God-given rights. The Center's purpose is to engage legal,
legislative and cultural issues by implementing an effective strategy of advocacy, education
and litigation to ensure that those rights are protected under the law. The organization has
participated in numerous cases before the Supreme Court, Federal Court of Appeals, Federal
District Courts, and various state courts regarding freedom of religion and freedom of speech.
Your gift is very much appreciated and fully deductible as a charitable contribution. A copy
of our latest financial report may be obtained by writing to us at P.O. Box 90555, Washington,
DC 20090-0555.